Following death of elephant calf, tests show other Zoo elephants are virus free

Following death of elephant calf, tests show other Zoo elephants are virus free

ST. LOUIS – The Saint Louis Zoo is mourning the loss of the first Asian elephant to die from EEHV at the Zoo, Kenzi. The 6-year-old Asian elephant calf succumbed to elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus, specifically EEHV-1A, early Saturday. EEHV is a viral infection shown to be fatal to both wild elephants and those in human care.

Kenzi was the daughter of elephants Raja and Rani.

While the elephant care team continues to grieve, they are determined to continue leading the way in efforts to fight EEHV through their partnership with other elephant care facilities.

As of Monday, test results continue to indicate negative EEHV results for the rest of the Zoo’s elephants. Since this herpesvirus most frequently occurs in younger elephants, the Zoo says it will continue to provide prophylactic treatment to 4-year-old Priya and conduct regular testing.

The Zoo’s elephant care team successfully treated 11-year-olds Jade and Maliha for two different types of EEHV-1 on two separate occasions.